Christian Benteke scored a second-half hat-trick as Aston Villa zoomed five points clear of the Barclays Premier League relegation zone following a 6-1 win over Sunderland.

As they celebrated their success over a Sunderland outfit whose shuddering halt to their mini-revival included a red card for Stephane Sessegnon, the home fans wasted no time in taunting Paolo Di Canio, who, when he came here with Swindon earlier this season, indicated Villa were on their way down.

Ron Vlaar's opening goal was cancelled out by Danny Rose's clever finish. However, once Andreas Weimann restored the hosts' lead, they never looked back. Benteke scored the next three goals to put the game out of the Black Cats' reach before Gabriel Agbonlahor completed the rout.